Sweet and Sour
by GraphiteHelix
Summary: [COMPLETE!] Sugar Rush gets a new update. New tracks, new power-ups, new racers! How will the current occupants of the sweet world of Sugar Rush react to the changes? Please review! (DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Wreck-It Ralph...I wish I did, though!)
1. Announcement

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 1 – Announcement

##LITWAK'S ARCADE##

It was a Saturday morning, mere minutes before Mr. Litwak would open the doors to a gamer's haven. A fair number of kids and game-loving adults were waiting outside for the arcade's opening. Mr. Litwak was walking around hanging up last minute posters for game updates that will take place on Sunday. Sundays were usually Mr. Litwak's days off, but he comes in for a few hours when new software comes in for his games. Mr. Litwak walked up to one of his most popular games. He hung the last poster on the side of the game and said something quietly, as if he was talking to the game. With a smile, he walked off to greet his customers for the day.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

During the last few minutes of relaxing time for the morning, the ruler of a sugar coated racing world and watched as her fellow racers zoomed around the candy track to determine which nine racers would be featured in today's races. She had pulled herself from the Random Roster Race for the day. She was a featured racer for the last five days, a favorite racer for most players, and she wanted a break from the track.

The president of Sugar Rush sat on a peppermint style chair on the balcony of the highest tower of Candy Castle, the best vantage point to watch the race. She had her favorites for the day, but there were a few racers that stunned the candy crowd.

Vanellope looked up from the race just in time to see the arcade owner walk up to the game. She watched as he hung a colorful poster to the side of the game console.

"Sugar Rush is getting a big update tomorrow!" The elderly owner said to himself and smiled and walked away.

Vanellope stared in shock at the screen as the owner went to greet his guests. Nine small chiming sounds snapped her out of her reverie as the first nine racers crossed the finish line to determine the featured racers for the day.

Vanellope slid down a taffy slide to meet the racers. She watched as a cherry top Jubileena buffed the side of her pie-styled kart. She was the unfortunate target of a few well-placed sweet seekers, and barely missed out on being in the top nine. Vanellope patted the racer on the shoulders and smiled before meeting the winners.

Taffyta, Rancis, Candlehead, Minty, Snowanna, Adorabeezle, Citrusella, Gloyd, and Sticky were celebrating in the winner's circle when Vanellope walked up to them. She called for the other racers to join them for a quick meeting.

"Congrats to the nine winners!" Vanellope cheered, "You will represent Sugar Rush as the avatars in today's races! I have some news to share with everyone, so please meet at the castle when the day's done! Race a great race, everyone!" With that, Vanellope walked off toward the castle, leaving herself out of the races for the day. She had an announcement to prepare and an update to plan for. The other 14 racers watched as their President disappeared into the castle before preparing for the day's races. The victorious nine remained on the winner's circle waiting to be picked, while the other 5 walked over to their karts and waited for the races to begin.

Vanellope watched from a window near the castle's entrance as Taffyta and Sticky were chosen as the first avatars of the day. As she was headed to the throne room, a tiny, green candy drop walked up to her with a piece of fondant shaped like parchment.

"What do you have for me this fine morning, Sir Bill of Sourness?" Vanellope asked, staring at the fondant parchment.

Since the end of King Candy's reign, Vanellope gave Sour Bill the assignment of Secretary of Public Relations. He was the go-to person between the candy land's citizens and the President as well as the go-to person between other games and Vanellope (Ralph being the exception. He was, after all, her best stink-brain friend). Sour Bill liked his new duties, but he didn't show it.

"Its news of the new update, Miss President," Sour Bill replied in his usual monotone voice, "All of those that shared are from those who have games near Mr. Litwak's office. They said he was reading the insert that came with the update disk out loud and they were able to hear it all from their consoles."

Vanellope scanned the parchment for a quick minute before glancing up at Sour Bill. "News travels fast around Litwak's," she thought aloud, "Thank you for the news, Sir Bill. Please tell all of our citizens to meet in Mango Meeting Room A when the arcade closes. I'll be in my room if any new news comes up." After patting Sour Bill on the head, Vanellope headed up to her room to prepare the speech she plans to deliver later at night.

##FIX-IT FELIX JR.##

Ralph stood from being launched into the mud for the third time today. It was a slow day for the Fix-It Felix Jr. crew. But during one of the times Ralph was raised up on the Nicelander's shoulders, he noticed a large crowd of kids standing around the Sugar Rush game.

He watched as his friend, Felix, walked up to him, fiddling around with his golden hammer.

"Almost got with a few bricks there, Ralph!" Felix said, tapping his hammer to the mud and turning it back to grass, "Way to wreck it today!"

"Same to you, Felix," Ralph greeted, cleaning himself of the mud, "By the way, I thought I saw the little green tart ball here earlier today, what was that visit all about?"

"Oh, you didn't hear?" Felix questioned, looking up at the screen and watching people walk by their game, "The little tyke is getting an update to her game."

"Really, now?" Ralph asked, bemused, "Why did Bill have to come all this way to tell us that?"

Felix glanced away from the screen as a player walked up to their machine, "He was asking the Nicelanders if it was okay for their people to hang out here during the update," Felix replied, before making his way to his start position. "Get ready to wreck it, Ralph! We have a player!" With that, he left to prepare for game play.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

The cheering of the candy crowd made it difficult for Vanellope to concentrate on completing the announcement she had to deliver later at night. She may have wanted a break today, but racing was in her code, and she missed the feel of being behind the wheel of her race kart. Unfortunately for her, the duties of being President had to come first today.

Vanellope looked down at the fondant parchment she received from Sour Bill earlier and sighed, "I need to get this done! The arcade is closing soon!"

She stared at what she had completed of her speech and picked up her pink icing pen. "The race is against the clock! And GO!" She whispered loudly to herself and started writing.

##LITWAK'S ARCADE##

The day went breezed by. Mr. Litwak had a commercial throughout the week, advertising the big updates. Because of this, kids and adults alike flocked to Litwak's to play their favorite games before their big changes. Older favorites received attention from a few gamers, but the largest crowd of the day surrounded the two game consoles of Sugar Rush Speedway.

"Attention gamers, the arcade will be closing in 5 minutes," Mr. Litwak announced through the loudspeaker. "Thank you for using Litwak's as your source of entertainment!"

Moans and groans were heard from around the arcade, the loudest coming from the group near Sugar Rush. There were handfuls that won't be able to play, and that upset them.

Slowly, but surely, the crowd trickled out the door. The last few races were done in Sugar Rush. Even games like Fix-It Felix Jr. and Hero's Duty had last minute games played.

Soon after the last family left the arcade, the lights went out and the doors were locked. The arcade was, at last, closed for the weekend.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

Vanellope finished her speech early enough to watch the last race. She smiled as she watched Jubileena hit Taffyta, Gloyd, and Swizzle with Sweet Seekers. She knew for sure that was payback for what happened during the random roster race. Jubileena came in a close second to Candlehead.

The racers sped off the track after the last race, meeting each other at the entryway of the castle. Sour Bill led them to Mango Meeting Room A, where they saw the other candy citizens of Sugar Rush.

After a short wait, Vanellope walked up to the stage, which made the room grow quiet. She took a deep breath and started her announcement.

"Ladies, Gentlemen, and Candies, thank you for coming to tonight's meeting." She paused for a moment before taking another deep breath and continuing. "Early tomorrow morning, our game consoles are going to be unplugged..."


	2. Preparations

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 2 - Preparations

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

"Early tomorrow morning, our game consoles are going to be unplugged..."

"WHAT?!"

"No way! What happened?"

"It wasn't because of the President's glitch, was it?"

Vanellope watched as racers and candy alike panicked at the incomplete announcement. Sour Bill, who knew what the unplugging was all about, rolled his eyes and climbed up on to Vanellope's shoulder. Straight into the mic, in a loud, monotone voice, he yelled "QUIET!"

Immediately, the attendance in the room was silenced. Pleased with his success, he jumped off the President's shoulder and resumed his position at her side.

"Thank you, Sir Bill!" Vanellope whispered and faced the crowd again. "If you would let me finish my announcement, I'll probably answer any questions you'll have and minimize the panic. If you still have questions, I'll answer them at the end. And no, Taffyta, it's not because of my glitch, so drop it!"

"Now, as I was saying, early tomorrow morning, our game consoles are going to be unplugged...TEMPORARILY," Vanellope continued her announcement, putting emphasis at the end. "During the time we're unplugged and being updated, Tapper's has saved us a hidden level party room for us to hang out in."

"The Nicelanders in Fix-It Felix Jr. have allowed us to stay in their neighborhood to relax and enjoy the day off." She paused for a moment, then smiled, "As we speak, Mr. Felix is fixing up a few apartments for us to rest in for the day, and plans to ask Ralph to wreck up the junkyard and create a race track in his style! Mr. Felix has also agreed to create a race track of his own in a cleaner, less smelly part of Niceland." This caused the racers to grin. They were able to bring their karts and practice on terrain other than sugary sweets.

"Just because we're being unplugged, doesn't mean we're going to be homeless or game-less," Vanellope added, "We will be back to our game soon after the big update." A loud sigh of relief was heard throughout the room, causing Vanellope to grin.

"Now for the update," She continued. "Because of the our popularity, Mr. Litwak has ordered and will be receiving four more race consoles, so now up to six players can play. We're also getting our own separate power strip because, along with the six consoles, a big screen TV and speakers will be plugged in so that spectators can watch the race in split-screen on the TV monitor instead of crowding around a single console and watching from a small screen. We will still have the same port in Game Central Station, but please don't go exploring around the area around the TV and speaker. That is, unless you want to die a quick, but painful death."

"We will be getting new tracks, new power-ups, and, according to some sources, new racers." Vanellope added, "So please make them feel welcome! This update is themed, based on the sour, tangy candies of the world. I just hope the new racers don't have sour attitudes!" This caused some of laughter among the racers. "Unfortunately, I don't have specific details on what the tracks will look like, what the power-ups do, and who the new racers will be. I'll be coming back immediately after the update to gather up as much information as I can to share with you. We'll have a post-update meeting here tomorrow evening, and I'll invite the new racers to introduce themselves!"

"Mr. Litwak will be coming in to make the changes at seven in the morning tomorrow, so I want everyone to meet at the bridge an hour before we're unplugged. We'll do a quick head count to make sure no one is left behind. The consoles will be plugged in almost immediately after a new power strip is put in, but I want everyone to be safe and stay out of the game until after the update." Vanellope looked up at the crowd, who were nodding in agreement about their safety. "For those who want out tonight, Tapper's is a 24-hour bar, so you're welcome to stay there. After making this announcement, I'll check with Mr. Felix and Ralph to see if there are any rooms ready for those who want to rest away from the game. And that's it. Any questions?"

##FIX-IT FELIX JR.##

Felix looked at the row of apartments he had just built with nearly half of the scrap bricks gathered up in the junkyard. There were 5 apartments on each side of the street, 10 in total. And at the end of the block stood a large race track that would amaze racers from any game. Blue and yellow flags lined the street near the apartment and continued on in alternating patterns along the walls of the building of the speedway. It was a pure asphalt track, with many sharp turns, but no ramps and jumps. He didn't want anyone getting hurt, or worse, on his track. After all, if you die outside your game, you don't regenerate.

Felix turned and heard pounding not too far away, and saw a large dust cloud coming from the junkyard. He had asked Ralph to create a race track in the junkyard, but to keep it as safe as a scrap yard of bricks can be. Ralph was ecstatic to help his little friend out. Q*Bert, on the other hand, was angered because of all the noise and shaking because of the pounding. The little orange critter didn't have the guts to bleep out in anger at the large wrecking machine. It had heard stories about the adventures Ralph had in Sugar Rush, how it was supposed to be impossible to break a jawbreaker in half, and how he was able to do it with his bare fists. He respected the big guy. After all, Ralph did give him a home.

Ralph gave his version of a race track one last pound before looking at what he completed. It was a track similar to one he had constructed in Diet Cola Mountain, but with brick scenery and no falling Mentos into hot cola waiting to explode and burn you. He considered his track safe, but he asked Felix to do a once-over to make sure. Felix used the rest of the bricks to construct a wall around the outside perimeter of the track. In the end, there wasn't a single scrap brick in the junkyard. At least until the arcade reopens on Monday.

Vanellope popped in just before Midnight and saw everything that had been built. She was excited about using the two tracks. After she was given the tour of the apartment space, she already planned to spend many Sundays kicking back in one of the apartment pools and hot tubs.

Vanellope looked at Felix and Ralph and asked if it was okay for candies and racers to come in tonight. Felix said that it was okay, just as long as they wait until morning to use the race tracks. Vanellope nodded and, giving both men a quick thank you hug, she sped off to share the news with the residents of her candy haven.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

The time to move out was coming close. Almost all of the candies have already left to Niceland to enjoy the apartments built for them. Some were still terrified of Ralph, but most were able to accept him after witnessing how close he and their princess/president were. He may be a bad guy, but those who saw how much Vanellope loved the big guy (like a big brother, of course); they learned that he wasn't really a bad guy.

At around six in the morning, Vanellope asked her fellow racers to drive around and make sure that no one stuck around. Vanellope stayed at the rainbow bridge, watching as last minute residents went through the game barrier and into Game Central Station. Half an hour later, the racers returned with the all clear then they too sped off. When the last racer went through the barrier, Vanellope turned and stared at the now empty candy covered world and smiled. She hopped into her kart and went through the barrier.

##LITWAK'S ARCADE##

At promptly seven in the morning, Mr. Litwak came in and unplugged the two Sugar Rush Speedway consoles. He left the games and walked to his office to grab a new power strip and the update disk. He would have to wait until the other four consoles came in and everything was installed along with the TV and speakers before he made the updates. Mr. Litwak stared at the manual that came with the update disk. On the front cover, three new racers were featured, posing with their karts in front of two new race tracks while each holding three new items, which he assumed were the new power-ups for the game.


	3. Update

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 3 - Update

##LITWAK'S ARCADE##

It was nearly four in the afternoon when the all six consoles were installed and connected to the TV. Now he was installing the update disk into the consoles. It would take another two to three hours until all six consoles received the update. Mr. Litwak was hoping to leave the shop earlier, but the consoles were delayed by traffic and the technicians hired to connect the games to the TV couldn't find their way to the arcade. In the end, what was supposed to be an easy, short day turned into a much longer and stressful day.

##FIX-IT FELIX JR.##

The racers were given permission to use the tracks at nine in the morning. Before then, each of them walked the tracks to get used to the lay of the land. At nine, Vanellope gathered the racers in front of the Nicelander's apartment with Ralph, Gene, and Felix standing behind her, Gene and Felix each holding a stopwatch given to them by Vanellope.

"Okay, fellow racers!" Vanellope began, "Today's challenge: race the fastest time on both tracks! Each of us will have two chances to drive two laps around each of the tracks. The fastest lap will be the time used for the contest. Ralph asked a Nicelander named Gene to be the timekeeper at his Wreck-It Raceway while he keeps track. Mr. Felix will be the timekeeper and recorder in his Fix-It Speedway. The one who gets the slowest time on each track will split the cost for root beer at Tapper's later this afternoon!" The racers cheered at the announcement. "Each of us has walked the tracks and should be somewhat familiar with its twists and turns, however, this will be our first time racing on them. We don't know if any parts of the track will damage our karts, so two Nicelanders named Deanna and Mary have agreed to help us with any baking in their kitchens to patch things up until we can access the Kart Bakery."

"We will take a break around noon. The moles from the Whack-A-Mole have provided the Nicelanders with fresh ingredients from their hidden garden to fix us up a nice lunch. I understand all of you brought sweets from home, so we can have a block party and share our food with everyone! The rest of the day can be spent racing or hanging out. And we can't forget our Tapper's celebration!" Vanellope cheered and hopped into her kart. "Let's go!"

The racers agreed to split up evenly and tackle the challenge faster so that they had more time to hang out and relax.

][WRECK-IT RACEWAY][

Taffyta, Candlehead, Rancis, Gloyd, Jubileena, Citrusella, Crumbelina, and Vanellope wanted to test out the junkyard track. Taffyta wanted to be the first to run the track. She hopped into her kart and revved it up.

"Alright, Taffyta, two laps!" Gene said and looked at the stopwatch. "Ready, set, GO!" At Gene's signal, Taffyta sped off, leaving a cloud of dust in her wake. The track itself was short, but the dirt road made it difficult for Taffyta to control her kart. Each turn would cause the kart to drift and she found herself slowing down at each turn. After her two laps, Taffyta marched up to Ralph and complained about the road conditions.

"Hey, I was just doing what I was asked," Ralph said, raising his arms in surrender. He looked down at the stopwatch and wrote in her time, causing the angry racer to harrumph and stomp away.

About 25 minutes later, all eight were talking about the difficult race track. Taffyta sighed when she found out she had the slowest lap time so far of 1:00:37. She hoped any of the seven racers who haven't tried the Wreck-It Raceway would have a much more difficult drive and race a slower time. Rancis, with his big peanut butter cup wheels, had an easier race and the fastest time of 0:38:04.

][FIX-IT SPEEDWAY][

Minty, Torvald, Sticky, Adorabeezle, Nougetsia, Snowanna, and The Swizz lined their karts up along the walls of the track. He checked the rainbow lollipop wheels of his kart, buffed it a bit with the elbow part of his sleeve, and drove up to the starting line.

"Okay Swizzle, are you ready for your two laps?" Felix asked and got ready with the stopwatch. Swizzle, who was focused at this point, gave quick thumbs up. "Very well, then. On your mark, get set, GO!" At Felix's cue, The Swizz raced off.

The first few hundred meters of the track was a relaxing, straight drive. That, however, would be the last of the relaxing. The rest of the track was filled with sharp turns, including one area that featured an inclining S-bend, which had them take a sharp left immediately followed by a sharp right. The end of the track featured another S-bend, not as bad as the first, just before the finish line. There were times where Swizzle thought he'd lose his candy cap as he sped through the turns.

Soon after Swizzle crossed the finish line after his second lap, he walked up to Felix, who was recording his fastest lap time - a decent 0:59:11. "Man, Mr. Felix, you sure do know how to construct a track!" The Swizz boasted, adjusting his cap and watched as Snowanna jumped into her kart, "That was one awesome drive!"

Felix blushed at the praise, "I thought you all would like it this way," he laughed, "After seeing all the twists and turns of Sugar Rush, I thought it'd be a good idea to try and replicate that here." The Swizz nodded and gave Felix a thumbs up before walking up to Snowanna at the start line.

][NICELAND APARTMENTS][

At around 10:30 in the morning, the moles of Whack-A-Mole delivered one final batch of their fresh produce to Deanna. Both she and Mary spent the next two hours making some delectable dishes - tomato soup, baked potatoes, and a green salad with julienne carrots. Roy went to the Niceland Market earlier in the day and was now grilling some burgers and hot dogs. There were three tables filled with sweets from the citizens of Sugar Rush - peppermints, pies, cakes, chocolates, taffies - you name it, they probably had it.

At around one in the afternoon, the block party began. It was an hour later than planned, but that didn't matter. They all planned to just hang out before going to Tapper's for their root beer. The only mystery now was who had to float the bill for the root beer.

Vanellope helped herself to another baked potato and topped it with bacon bits, sour cream, and shredded cheese. She and the other racers never thought eating healthy would be so delicious, and each of them praised Deanna and Mary for a job well done. She set her plate down on a vacant table before going up to the top doorstep of one of the apartments. Ralph, who had been laughing at the reactions of the racers toward the healthy cooking, saw Vanellope and handed her the final results of the contest. When the other racers saw Ralph stand and walk over to Vanellope, each of them quieted and waited anxiously for the results to be announced.

"Here we go! The results for the morning contest!" Vanellope exclaimed before scanning the two pieces of paper handed to her. "Remember, the two slowest will split the bill at Tapper's later today! The slowest lap time for the Fix-It Speedway...Rancis, with a time of 1:31:20!"

Rancis sighed. He kept on crashing into the walls during the turns. He was hoping speeding through it would do him good, but it didn't help him at all. It also didn't help that he tried to sneak a few peeks at himself in his side mirror.

"Candlehead had the fastest time for the Fix-It Speedway, a speedy 0:58:63! Here's some funny news," Vanellope paused and grinned at Rancis, "Rancis, you had the fastest time at the Wreck-It Raceway. The two slowest were Taffyta and Swizz. With a difference of one-one hundredths of a second, the slowest racer for the Wreck-It Raceway is...The Swizz, with a time of 1:00:38!"

Taffyta let out a big sigh of relief. Swizzle snapped his fingers and popped a lollipop into his mouth. "Rancis and Swizzle would share the bill at Tapper's later today." Vanellope announced, "We'll go to Tapper's at around 5PM tonight. Hopefully, I can take a sneak peek into the game to see what I can gather about the update."

At that moment, Sour Bill walked up to Vanellope. "Miss President, leave the information gathering to me," he said in his usual monotone voice, "It is, after all, the duty you gave me." Vanellope snickered at the word 'duty'. Ralph caught on and rolled his eyes.

"Thank you, Sir Bill," Vanellope grinned, "And thanks for keeping up with your DOODIES!" She broke out in laughter and walked away. Sour Bill shook his head and sighed before walking in the opposite direction to help himself to another sour Warhead.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

Around 6:30pm, the updates to the six consoles were complete. The new drivers were programmed to know the current characters and the designs of their karts. One of the three new drivers spent her time exploring the land when she came up to Candy Castle. She watched as a girl in a kart she didn't recognize drive into the castle as if she owned it. She also noticed the lack of security at the castle gates. Afraid that something might have happened, she shifted her kart to drive and was about to speed off when she saw a green ball of candy walking up to her.

Sour Bill rode back into the game with Vanellope. He noticed a new racer driving up to the castle and alerted his President of the guest. She gazed at the kart for a moment, said something to him and waited for him to hop out of her kart and drove into the castle.

Sour Bill walked up to the new driver. He assumed she was a new update, so she wouldn't know about Vanellope's title as President. He studied her Key Lime Pie kart, wondering how to address her, before finally speaking. "Miss, Pres-I mean Princess Vanellope requires your attendance, as well as the attendance of the other two new racers tonight at the castle gates," he droned. He bowed and walked toward the rainbow bridge and left the game. He had to deliver similar messages to the other racers.

The new racer sat in her kart for a moment, in shock. The castle messenger had left the game, which meant their Princess had to find safety outside the game while strangers took over the castle. And what of their King? Why was the Princess presiding over the meeting and not King Candy? She had to share her findings with the other two racers. Sugar Rush might be in trouble, and she knew her two friends won't let it go down without a fight!


	4. Meeting

A/N: Sorry for the slight delay. I try to update every three days, but things came up, which prevented me from getting to my laptop for a day. I'll try to update in two days to get things back on schedule!

Thank you to those who reviewed and followed this story! Its people like you that keep writers like me going! :D

Finally, I know it's in my summary, but it's worth repeating. I don't own Wreck-It Ralph. However, there will be characters in this fanfic that are all mine! :D

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 4 - Meeting

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

][THE MUDSLIDE TUNNEL][

Three of the newest racers met in a hidden, underground race track known, so far, by only them. The track was all smooth chocolate, but cocoa powder and chocolate cookie crumbs fall from the cave's ceiling and onto the track, making the drive a bit bumpy and the course a bit slippery. Sour gummy worms were used as the walls of the track. It had no ramps, but two chocolate wafer bridges crossed over a fork in a chocolate syrup river, which filled a lake at the center of the track. Surrounding the track were buried jelly beans, polished by the falling cocoa powder and making it look like gems sticking out from the ground. Dotting the walls of the cave were tiny holes used by gummy bears to sleep. The purposes of the gummy bears were unknown to all racers, old and new. They were programmed to randomly select two different actions: come out of their slumber and cheer the racers on, or wake up grumpy and launch cookie crumbs at the racers.

"So, why are we meeting at the Mudslide Tunnel again?" One of the two new male racers asked while jumping out of his orange jelly bean race kart. He leaned against one of the Oreo wheels and looked at the girl expectantly, while playing with his orange baseball cap made of mamba fruit chews.

"Yeah, what's so important and why did we have to meet in secret?" The other boy asked, climbing out of his bright green sour warhead kart.

"Look, I don't know what's going on, and I'm terrified to find out," the only new female racer sighed, not wanting to jump out of her pie kart. "The Princess wants to meet with us tonight near the gates, but I don't know if that's the safest place to meet."

"I'd like for you guys to come with me to the castle gates tonight," the girl continued, "But I know you two would rather want to spruce up your karts for a possible race-off."

"Got that right!" Both boys said in unison. They both hopped into their karts and got ready to speed off to the Kart Bakery. One of them yelled out, "Keep us updated!" before they both raced off.

The girl sighed before starting up her kart. "Boys will be boys," she whispered before heading to Candy Castle.

][CANDY CASTLE GATES][

Vanellope stood outside, just beyond the castle gates, wearing the Princess dress she received during the game's reset. She was against wearing the dress, but Sour Bill explained that these three were new updates and did not know about her title as President, that their coding still has them recognizing her as their Princess.

She stared at the gloves covering her hands, not used to being all dolled up for a meeting. She looked up and saw a key lime pie kart driving up to her. She tugged slightly at the collar of her dress as the racer came to a stop a few feet away and hopped out of her kart.

"Your highness, sorry to have kept you waiting," The racer said and curtsied, I'm Anjelly Smartyfudge, one of the three new racers of Sugar Rush."

Vanellope smiled at the girl's curtsy. "Welcome to the wonderful land of candy, Anjelly!" She exclaimed. She looked around and saw that the girl had come alone. "I could have sworn I told Sour Bill to ask all three of you. Where are the other two?"

"Um," Anjelly hesitated. She looked down at her shoes. "Well, they're getting for a race..." She paused.

"Race?" Vanellope questioned. She noticed the other racer grimaced when she questioned. Confused, she looked out at the gingerbread screen and saw that it had been slightly enlarged. Then it dawned on her. "I guess it's okay to prepare for the Random Roster Race, but I expect all three of you to come to the castle tonight to introduce yourselves to the other racers."

Anjelly looked up and smiled, "Of course, Princess! I'll make sure they come!" She hadn't thought about using the Random Roster Race as an excuse, but if it kept her two friends out of trouble, she would go with it.

"Excellent!" Vanellope said happily, "I look forward to meeting them. But for now, I have a favor to ask of you," She looked at the other racer, whose facial expression went from happy to worried in record time.

"Princess?"

Vanellope grinned, "It's nothing bad, Anjelly. I was just going to ask you about the new updates." She paused and explained about their day away from the game and how she had just returned to see what had changed.

Anjelly let out a big sigh of relief. She had thought they were being enlisted to fight back against the strangers hidden in the castle. It was obvious that the Princess didn't know about the strange racer that barged into the castle earlier.

"Of course, Princess! Is it okay if we meet back here in about half an hour?" Anjelly asked, "I want to tell the boys about tonight's meeting, and I'm sure you want out of that dress!"

Vanellope laughed and nodded, "I'll see you in thirty minutes, then!" With a quick wave, she sprint walked towards the castle to change.

Anjelly watched as the Princess entered the castle before jumping into her kart and driving over to the Kart Bakery to tell the two boys about the meeting.

][KART BAKERY][

The Kart Bakery received an update, one that wasn't reported by other game characters. They thought it was a little bug fix and didn't feel it was worth mentioning.

The two boys were examining the changes to their karts when Anjelly drove up to them. She told them about her meeting with the Princess and how she expected all three of them to show up to a meeting later tonight.

The two boys looked at each other and asked whether it was safe to go, but their hesitations were quickly beaten down when Anjelly reminded them that they had already ignored one of their highness' invitations and how it wouldn't be wise to do so again. In anger, the lone female racer sped off to fulfill a favor and left the two boys to themselves to contemplate their plans for later that evening.

][VANELLOPE'S ROOM][

The update didn't leave Vanellope untouched. The moment she entered her room, there was a quick flash of light. During that short second, she had undergone a complete attire change. She was now sporting a white racer suit with a mint green stripe running down along both sides of the jacket and pants. In shock, she ran down towards the throne room to see if her kart was okay.

Once she got there, she saw her kart displayed in a sugar art display case along with her former hoodie attire. Near the kart stood a sugar cookie plaque that read "The kart that saved the world". Above the plaque was a fondant parchment that told the story of how she was shunned, called a mistake, befriended an outsider, and restored the world despite the bullying she took from her fellow racers.

There was another display next to hers, memorializing King Candy. It, too, displayed King Candy's kart and had a parchment with his story - how he fought against Turbo, lost, was impersonated by Turbo, and how Vanellope beat him despite his cheating ways.

After looking at the two karts being displayed, she realized she didn't have a kart of her own. She turned to look at the throne, where her kart was parked. In its place was a kart similar to King Candy's, but pink. It had white stripes down the middle and side and a mint green crown detail on the hood. She hopped into the kart and drove a few laps around the room. After a few laps, she tried to glitch around the room, hoping the bug fix didn't take that away from her. Though she still had the ability, the using it now took some energy. She sat still in her new kart for a short moment before driving out to meet with Anjelly about the new updates.

][MANGO MEETING ROOM A][

It was nearly eight in the evening when the racers met up in the same meeting room they were in the night before the updates. Vanellope walked in and straight up to the stage, sporting her new race suit. Jubileena and Citrusella high-fived each other, recognizing their Princess' old racing gear. Candlehead giggled at the sight. She was one of the few who still called Vanellope "Princess" and while she didn't mind the hoodie and skirt look, she loved seeing her Princess look more regal. The rest of them just stared.

"Hello ladies and gents, and welcome home!" Vanellope greeted. Several of the racers cheered, while the others continued staring at their leader. "As some of you have noticed, and I'm sure you have, I was part of the updates and bug fixes. My old kart and attire are now on display in the throne room. You'll see my new kart tomorrow morning at the Random Roster Race!"

"Thanks to the help of one of the new racers, I have a full list of changes that I'm sure will interest all of you." She paused for a bit when she noticed a lone racer sneak into the meeting room. "First of all, the Kart Bakery picked up an update that was never mentioned during the last meeting. Now, you can take your current kart into the Bakery and fix up one part of your kart. Whether you're after better wheels, faster engine, or easier handling, you get 15 seconds to make the fix and how you do will determine whether or not it'll be an upgrade or downgrade. The fix will only last the day. Everything goes back to base stats when the arcade closes."

"Anything you do after closing hours will be available only when players aren't involved - so days off, holidays, and at night. Those changes are permanent. However, you will only be able to make three upgrades per part for free. Any upgrade after that will cost you!" Vanellope paused again, looked at the crowd of racers, and saw all but one racer smiling at the changes made to the Bakery.

"We have two new tracks," Vanellope continued, looking at the one racer with worry. She'll deal with that situation when she invites the racer up to the stage, but for now, she needed to focus on completing her announcements. "One track is an underground track just south of Frosty Rally and west of Diet Cola Mountain. This track is called The Mudslide Tunnel and I have been told that driving on it will be very bumpy and uncomfortable. The second track is to the east of Diet Cola Mountain. This track is called the Sourpuff Raceway, and while the scenery around the track is one of the best I've seen, the track itself seems a bit slippery to drive on."

"We also have three new power-ups focused mainly on hindering our vision during a race. First, we have Lemon Juice, which we can squirt into the air and hope it lands on the racers behind us. As a puddle on the ground, you can splash it into the eyes of racers near you. We also have Pixy Dust. It starts off as a small tube. Once you throw it down on the track, it'll be difficult to see it on the ground while driving. When someone runs it over, including you, it'll explode into a large pixy powder cloud, which will fog up that section of the track until someone wins the race. Finally, we have Smarty Disks. The moment we throw it out, it'll bounce around the track until it hits someone."

"And finally, we meet the new racers! Can you come up, please?" Vanellope watched as her invite slowly walked up to the stage, head hung low. "Fellow racers, this is Anjelly Smartyfudge! She's the one that helped me with learning about the updates and showing me the new tracks, please treat her well!"

She turned to look at Anjelly, who was waving at the racers. "Is everything okay?"

"Your highness...I'm sorry," The new racer cried. On instinct, Candlehead and Jubileena climbed up to the stage and tried to console their new friend. "I invited them, I know I did. I just don't know why they refuse to show up!"

Vanellope sighed. "You do realize this is the second time they ignored my invite, right?" The other racer nodded. "And you know I can't let it go without punishing them, right?" This caused Anjelly to look at her Princess in shock. Jubileena and Candlehead mirrored the shock, not having seen this side of her before.

Vanellope turned to the mic and addressed the racers again. "Unfortunately, Anjelly's friends have decided to ignore my invite. This would be the second time they have done so." She turned to the three racers on stage and frowned, before continuing. "As punishment, no power-ups will be made available to them during the day's races. In addition to that, they are banned from participating in the Random Roster Races. These punishments will be lifted when they finally decide to meet with me."

Vanellope rubbed at her forehead and sighed. "That ends the meeting. Feel free to drive around and check out the new tracks." She stepped away from the mic and off the stage. "I'll see you all at tomorrow's race." With that, she left the room.

Candlehead wanted to chase after her to make sure she was okay, but Taffyta and Rancis held her back. Now wasn't the time to disturb their Princess. Anjelly, however, jumped off the stage and rushed out of the room, hoping to catch up to the Princess. Unfortunately, once she got to the castle entrance, Vanellope was nowhere to be found.


	5. Confrontations

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 5 - Confrontations

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

Vanellope wanted to get away. She showed a side to her even she didn't think she had, and she was sure the other racers were having second thoughts about her. She needed someone to talk to and she knew none of the racers were going to help her. She ran to the throne room, hopped into her new kart, and half drove-half glitched toward the rainbow bridge. There was only one person she could trust right now and she wanted to get there fast.

Two people were watching as their Princess left the game from the grandstands. At least they thought it was their Princess. The racer had the same outfit and kart as the Princess they knew, but when they saw her pixelate from one place to another, they knew something was up. There was a bug in the game and they were going to do anything in their power to squash it.

They were about to drive off when they heard someone drive up. "Well well," A voice said from behind them. "What do we have here?" The racer turned to see two of her friends pull up next to her. "Candlehead, Jubileena, check on the Princess, you know where she went. The rest of us will deal with these two delinquents." The two nodded and drove off.

##FIX-IT FELIX JR.##

Ralph was just about to enter his home (built by Felix) at the edge of the junkyard when he heard wheels screeching to a stop behind him. He turned and saw a familiar candy-covered hairdo, but different kart and outfit. He slowly stepped away from his front door and cautiously approached the mysterious racer.

"Vanellope?" He whispered, stopping several feet from the kart.

Without warning, the racer jumped out of her kart and up to embrace the large man. She was crying, and mumbling things Ralph had difficulty understanding.

Ralph carefully pried the racer off and set her on the ground. He stared at the little girl in front of him for a moment. He wondered about the new outfit and kart, but now wasn't the time to ask.

"What's wrong, kid?" he asked, kneeling down in front of the person he saw as the little sister he never had.

"Ralph, I think I did something that might make them not like me anymore," Vanellope said between hiccups. She explained about the updates (which answered his question about her new look), how the new racers ignored her requests, the punishment she issued and how she felt after issuing those punishments. She also told him about the looks the other racers gave her just before she left, telling him it was as if they were questioning her leadership.

Ralph picked his friend up and hugged her. "I don't think that's the case at all," he comforted. He saw two flashes coming from the railway leading to Grand Central Station and watched as two karts - a pink frosted chocolate cake and a cherry pie - made their way to the junkyard. "And I think I know two people who can prove that they aren't mad at you."

Vanellope turned at the sound of two karts stopping nearby. She hopped out of her friend's embrace and was immediately engulfed into another by the two arriving racers.

"Why are you two here?" Vanellope asked, hugging her two friends back.

"Taffyta sent us to check on you," Jubileena replied, "She and the others are busy taking care of a couple of kids back at home."

"Are you okay, Princess?" Candlehead asked, "We're all wondering why you just ran off after the meeting."

Vanellope smiled and looked up at Ralph. "I'll be okay. I just needed someone to knock some sense into me." Both Jubileena and Candlehead stared at Ralph's freakishly big hands in shock. Vanellope laughed and explained that she didn't mean it literally.

"You should get back home, kid," Ralph said, interrupting what had turned into a giggle fest. "If what you told me about your glitching is true, then you need rest, especially since you used your glitched all the way from the castle to here!"

Vanellope nodded and looked at her two confused friends. "I'll explain later," was all she said before hopping into her kart. "Thanks for always being there for me, Ralphie!"

"That's what friends are for! Now, go on and get some rest!" Ralph said and watched as they raced back home.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

"2-on-2 race off! We'll do one lap around the entire Sugar Rush Circuit!" Taffyta challenged, choosing Rancis as her race partner. "If you win, we'll continue letting you do whatever your twisted minds are planning to do. If we win, we tell the Princess that you were sneaking around instead of attending her meeting. Hope you enjoy your time in the Fungeon!"

"You're on!" The two boys exclaimed and rolled their karts up to the starting line. Taffyta nodded at Rancis and both of them went to line up as well. Soon after Rancis and Taffyta lined up at the starting line, the countdown began and the race was on.

A minute later, Anjelly drove up to the group of racers, who were watching the big screen with complete interest. "What's going on?" She asked, watching as four colored dots moved around a map of the track.

"A race," Gloyd simply answered and pointed at the leader board next to the map. Anjelly looked at the board and saw her two friends trailing badly.

"May I ask why they're racing?" Anjelly questioned, pulling Gloyd away from the pack. She wasn't happy, and neither was Gloyd after being pulled away.

"Taffyta does not take kindly to people bad-mouthing the Princess," Gloyd growled and turned his attention back to the race. "Maybe if you ask your friends after they lose, they'll explain."

Anjelly turned to watch the race again and wondered why they were performing so badly, especially after they supposedly made their karts better at the Bakery. Then she remembered the punishment issued by the Princess and how they knew nothing about it.

"This race can't continue!" She yelled, "The boys know nothing about their punishment and the other two are taking advantage of it!" Unfortunately, her tirade fell on deaf ears. She sighed and continued watching the race, hoping that they would pull off a miracle.

][SUGAR RUSH CIRCUIT][

The two new racers were getting frustrated. They were the targets of power-up after power-up and were unable to use any themselves. Each time they would pass through a power-up sugar cube, they'd go right through it, as if they weren't there. They were way behind the other two racers, and the gap between them was growing fast.

Taffyta and Rancis were a few turns and a straightaway from finishing the race. Taffyta placed down a Pixy Dust tube just before a sharp turn and instructed Rancis to do the same with his. They each grabbed one more power-up block, but ended up with items they didn't need. Rancis dropped his Cherry Bomb at a random area while Taffyta placed her Sticky Slick near the center of the final turn. They both sped up at the straightaway with Taffyta barely beating Rancis to the finish line.

Anjelly stepped up to the both of them with her hands on her hips. "You guys raced an unfair race!" Just then, the two boys drove up, covered in Pixy Dust. "Those two didn't know about their punishment, yet you insisted on racing!"

"Loosen up, Smartyfudge," Taffyta said, popping a lollipop into her mouth. "Those punishments shouldn't take effect until after the Random Roster Race."

"Punishments? What's going on?" One of the boys asked, jumping out of his warhead kart and shaking himself clean of dust.

Anjelly sighed. "Guys and gals, meet Lucas Limonbean and Harry Beaumamba, the two other racers that did not show up for the meeting." She turned towards her two friends and watched as the other jumped out of his jelly bean kart and dusted himself off. "I hope you two are happy!"

"Can someone explain to us what you all are talking about?" Harry inquired, leaning on his jelly bean race kart, "What punishments? And will it explain why we weren't able to grab a power-up cube during the race?"

Taffyta looked up and saw three flashes come from the rainbow bridge. She watched and noticed Candlehead and Jubileena slowly escort Vanellope toward the castle. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I want to check on the Princess and then get some rest. Unlike a couple of boys here, I'm able to participate in the Random Roster Race in the morning," She bragged as she hopped into her kart. With a quick wave, she drove over to meet up with Vanellope and her escorts. Taffyta was quickly followed by the other racers, leaving Anjelly to explain everything to her two friends.

Anjelly watched, worried, as the rest of the racers met up with Vanellope, who was swerving to a stop at the base of the bridge. She turned to her two friends and commanded, "Mudslide Tunnel. Now." With that, she drove off, leaving the questions of the two boys temporarily unanswered.


	6. Explanations

A/N: As an apology of the long delay between Chapter 4 and Chapter 5, I decided to release Chapter 6 without much wait. So here it is!

This story is almost over. In fact, the next chapter will be the last! Worry not, a sequel is being planned, and will feature a race track that was incomplete in the movie!

As mentioned in my summary, I don't own Wreck-It Ralph or Sugar Rush.

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 6 - Explanations

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

][CANDY CASTLE][

Vanellope didn't realize how tired she was until she nearly collapsed after climbing out of her kart. Rancis and Swizzle helped her up and, standing at each side, helped her get to her bedroom. From there, Candlehead and Taffyta pushed the boys away and took over, explaining that it was rude to enter a girl's bedroom, especially the Princess' bedroom. The girls led Vanellope over to her bed and shut the door, leaving Rancis, Gloyd, and Swizzle waiting outside the room.

Candlehead looked up at Taffyta and asked why everyone was gathered near the track before they got back. Taffyta spent the next five minutes talking about her challenge, the reason behind the race, and the outcome. "So now, they have to tell me why they ignored your invites," She explained, "And their reason better be good!"

Vanellope sat up and glanced at Taffyta, "You can be one mean bully sometimes," She joked, causing the group of girls to giggle. "But thanks for looking after me."

"Vanellope, after the way we treated you when Turbo took over, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't allow anyone to speak badly of you," Taffyta announced, "And if I catch someone doing so, I'll make them regret it!" She growled, pounding her right fist into her left hand.

"And taking advantage of the punishment was part of that bullying?" Vanellope asked, staring at the white-haired racer.

Taffyta shrugged, "Not really. I really just wanted to check out the new power-ups. Having two easy targets was a bonus. Getting them to agree with the conditions I set was the strawberry to top an already awesome cake!" This got the girls to laugh again.

Vanellope laid back down, mumbling something about being so tired and pixlexia. Minty, who heard most of the mumbling, walked up to the bed and put her forehead to Vanellope's. "Guys, she has a slight fever. We should leave her to rest."

"I'll be fine, I just can't glitch around like I used to anymore," Vanellope said. She explained how the bug fixes messed with her glitch. "I can still use it, but it uses up a lot of energy. I think I overdid it tonight."

Candlehead stepped up and pulled pink and white striped blankets over Vanellope. "Take tomorrow off, Princess. You need rest." She walked over to the lamp, shut off the light, and then sent everyone from the room.

Gloyd was the first to stand from his waiting spot. "How is she?" He asked. The other two boys stood behind him.

"She'll be fine. I think she'll be back up and racing after a day or two of rest." Taffyta replied and led the group to the castle entrance. They met up with Sour Bill near the gates and told him about Vanellope's condition and to make sure she rested.

][THE MUDSLIDE TUNNEL][

Anjelly stood at the bridge, watching as the chocolate river flowed beneath her. As much as she didn't like the punishment the Princess gave her friends, she hated the fact that her friends ignored the Princess twice. She knew they deserved the punishment, and it could have been worse. They could have been tossed into the Fungeon! She turned when she heard karts drive into the tunnel.

"Alright, explain," Lucas demanded as he came to a stop just before the bridge. "And make it quick, we have the Random Roster Race in the morning!"

"Yeah, like you had power-ups today," Anjelly mumbled and turned her attention back to the chocolate river.

Harry hopped out of his kart and walked up to her, "What do you know, Jell?" He asked, stepping up and putting his hands on his hips, "And why are you so angry?"

Anjelly stomped and turned to face him, "Why am I so angry? Why are you both so stupid? Why did you ignore the Princess not once, but twice? What was so important that blowing off Princess Vanellope was worth it?"

Harry backed away and nearly bumped into Lucas, who had just jumped out of his warhead kart. That, unfortunately for them, did not stop their friend from her little tirade.

"You know that if you had just met the Princess with me at the castle gates, if you decided to attend the meeting instead of sneaking around, none of this would have happened," Anjelly continued, marching up to them, slightly less angry than just moments before. "Explain to me all of that and I'll tell you what I know."

"Anjelly," Harry sighed, "I don't know where to start."

"I do," Lucas grumbled. He didn't like getting yelled at, especially from someone that doesn't know what was really going on. "Your princess is a fake; a fraud. We saw her glitching after your meeting when she left the game."

"I know glitches can't leave their game," Harry continued, "But after we saw what we did, we couldn't trust the Princess everyone claims to love. What worries me more is, if that Princess is a fake, where is the real Princess Vanellope? And why haven't we seen King Candy since we were uploaded? Besides, you know why we were gone the first time. We were at the Bakery fixing our karts up."

Anjelly stared at the two for a moment before questioning, "Can you two explain to me how a fake Princess was able to manipulate the code so that power-ups were made unavailable to you two? I wouldn't be surprised if taffy straps tied your karts down tomorrow, should you choose to try and participate in the Random Roster Race. Because you two ignored the Princess' invite twice, she banned you from the Roster Race and from the use of power-ups."

"No way!" Lucas yelled, "There's no way we aren't participating in the Roster Race! We're going to be there, and we're going to win!"

"Good luck with that," Anjelly yawned and hopped into her kart. "Unlike you two, I'm not banned, so I do intend to race in the morning. I'm going to go get some rest. You two could continue your plans on what you intend to do with the fake Princess." With that, she drove off. With a shrug, the boys followed. Banned or not, they were going to try and race. None of the three racers noticed a small green candy drop hiding behind a green jelly bean crystal.

][CANDY CASTLE][

Sour Bill paced nervously around the throne room. It was morning and he could hear the roars of kart engines at the nearby starting line. He knew this would wake the Princess up and he expected her to head straight for her kart, ready to race. He looked out at the King's Tower and saw Vanellope sitting on the throne, letting out a big yawn. He ran out toward the tower as fast as his little feet can take him. He climbed the tower and panted before walking up to the microphone. He turned and saw Vanellope give him a thumbs-up and a nod, his signal to begin. He would have to deliver his news later.

He took a deep breath and, in his usual monotone voice, said "Ladies and Gentlemen, Princess Vanellope."

Vanellope dragged herself from the throne and slowly trudged over to the mic. Clearly, she was still spent, but she wasn't going to miss starting this race. "Welcome to the first Random Roster Race since the updates!" She announced, her cheerful voice masking the tiredness within, "Since we have a new racer participating, I have decided to make this race free of fees!" She turned away from the mic and let out another yawn.

"Unfortunately, I won't be racing today," she continued, "I have decided to take the advice of my friends and rest. But don't worry, I'll be down there and joining you guys tomorrow! That said, let the Random Roster Race begin!"

The leader board flashed the names of 18 racers, with three names grayed out - Vanellope, Harry, and Lucas. The two boys were too focused on starting the race that they didn't pay attention to the board or the track below them. Sticky Slick was slowly forming beneath the wheels of the two karts. The moment the light turned green, 15 karts zoomed past the start line, leaving two confused racers behind. As soon as the last kart cleared the start line, the two boys were surrounded by cherry bombs. They were stuck, and the other racers would have to move around them to cross the finish line.

No more than two minutes later, Jubileena, Taffyta, Rancis, Torvald, Swizzle, Crumbelina, Nougetsia, Anjelly, and Snowanna crossed the finish, determining the nine avatars for the day's races. Candlehead intentionally slowed to tenth so that she can keep an eye on the Princess. Citrusella and Minty, who came in just after Candlehead, agreed to help with taking care of Vanellope. The three would tag team the task so that each can still race. As soon as the last racer finished, the Cherry Bombs and Sticky Slick disappeared, releasing their two prisoners. Both boys were angry and glared up at Vanellope.

Vanellope slid down the taffy slide to greet the nine winners at the winner's circle. "Great job, guys, race hard today!" She shook the hands of the winners and was escorted by Candlehead and Minty back to the castle.

"YOU BUG!" Lucas yelled, hopped out of his kart and charged at Vanellope. Unfortunately for him, Gloyd managed to get a foot out in front of him and caused Lucas to land face first in the shortbread cookie ground. Harry ran out to protect his friend, but was detained by Wynchel and Duncan.

Sour Bill walked up to the doughnut security guards and watched as they secured the two boys. "Take them to the Fungeon for some cooling off," He ordered, "I'm sure the Princess will want to speak with them after she's rested." He glared at the two boys a little longer before walking off to check on Vanellope and her two friends.

Anjelly watched as her two friends were dragged off to the castle dungeons. She knew they deserved it. But what they were talking about the night before left many questions unanswered in her mind. For now, she had to concentrate on the races. She planned to get answers later, and would ask anyone and everyone if she had to.


	7. Answers

Sweet and Sour

Chapter 7 - Answers

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

][CANDY CASTLE][

Candlehead, Minty, and Vanellope took their time to get to the Princess' bedroom. Once they got there, Vanellope helped herself into bed and fell asleep before her head hit the pillow. Minty put her forehead to Vanellope's forehead again. She was still warm, but not as bad as the night before. Candlehead left for the castle kitchens to see if the castle chefs could cook up a warm soup. Unfortunately, all the chefs knew how to make were sweets and pastries. She knew of one place that made excellent soup, but it was dangerous to enter another game when the arcade was open. Determined to help her Princess, she hopped into her kart and left the game.

][SOURPUFF RACEWAY][

Taffyta, Anjelly, and Swizzle were chosen by players for a three-man race. Taffyta and Swizzle's gamer used Bakery time to increase the speed of their karts. Anjelly's gamer spent her Bakery time improving the traction of the wheels. The race was on.

Each time either Taffyta or Swizzle would land perfect hits on each other or on Anjelly, they would spin out of control moments later. At one point in the race, The Swiz was driving backwards. It took warning sirens a few seconds later to alert the gamer that he was going the wrong way.

In the end, the race was down to the two girls. Anjelly had a decent lead, and had Lemon Juice, for just in case someone tried to pass her up. Taffyta picked up a Sugar Rush speed boost. Thinking the extra speed would win the race, the player used the speed boost. It gave Taffyta just enough speed to pull within a kart's length of Anjelly. As Taffyta pulled up to just barely touching Anjelly's rear bumper, Anjelly let go of the Lemon Juice, splashing it into Taffyta racing goggles and caused her to swerve into a jelly bean near the finish line. That slowed her down enough for Anjelly to win the race and for Swizzle to pull up and take second.

After the race, the three racers met up near the finish line. Anjelly was holding her first ever trophy which contained 10 gold coins.

"This track is not a speed demon's friend," Swizzle commented as he picked up pixy powder and studied it between his fingers, "My wheels weren't able to get a good grip on the track at all!"

"My gamer fixed up my wheels," Anjelly said as she placed the trophy in her kart. The three watched as their karts reverted back to before the gamer upgrades. "I wonder if they learned about the updates before playing."

Taffyta sighed and wiped her helmet clear of lemon juice. "That was disappointing. I still lost, even after Swizzle raced the wrong way!" This caused Anjelly to giggle and Swizzle to blush and grumble about it not being his fault.

##FIX-IT FELIX JR.##

Candlehead drove through the barrier and quickly hid at the junkyard entrance. She watched as Ralph knocked over brick after brick and Felix masterfully dodge each one while repairing broken windows with his golden hammer. She watched as Felix received his medal and the Nicelanders threw Ralph over the edge of the building.

Ralph stood and brushed himself clean of mud. He glanced over at the junkyard and recognized a candlelit cap. He walked over, allowing the rest of the mud to slide off of his overalls. He walked up to the lone racer, wondering why she was out of her game during open hours.

"What's going on, kid?" Ralph asked, looking up at the screen and making sure there was nobody coming up to play.

Candlehead stared at her feet. She wasn't used to talking with Ralph without Vanellope around and was still slightly scared of him from the time he chased them off after destroying Vanellope's self-made pedal kart. "Um, well..."

Ralph watched as the girl shuffled her feet nervously. Not wanting to waste much time, he knelt down and spoke, "So, how's Vanellope?"

"She's okay," Candlehead squeaked, but shook her head soon after. "No, wait, she's not. She's sick, and I was wondering if you would ask your friends to make her some hot soup?"

"Why not wait until tonight?" Ralph asked. He looked up again and saw a kid about to put a coin into the machine.

"Because I wanted her to have something to eat when she woke up," Candlehead answered.

Ralph nodded. "Alright, I'll ask them when I wreck their windows. Wait here." He entered the game frame and started with his traditional "I'm gonna wreck it!"

Candlehead watched as Ralph destroyed window after window. She saw him stop at one of the windows and saw a female Nicelander pop her head out. Ralph continued his climb up the building and started knocking bricks over the edge. She watched as Felix came out, wielding his magical golden hammer, and started fixing everything that was wrecked. Unfortunately, his movements were a little too slow and a brick landed on his head. Felix fell over and the words "GAME OVER" flashed on the screen.

Ten minutes, and three games later, Ralph came back with a small pot of soup for Vanellope. "Sorry it took so long," he said, "Seemed like this guy wouldn't give up until he ran out of quarters!"

"Thank you!" Candlehead exclaimed before taking the pot and driving off.

##SUGAR RUSH SPEEDWAY##

][CANDY CASTLE][

Candlehead returned and saw Vanellope sitting up in bed and chatting away with Citrusella and Sour Bill. Sour Bill had just finished telling Vanellope everything he heard when he went to check on the three new racers. He was supposed to tell the boys of that group of their punishment when he overheard their conversation.

Candlehead handed Vanellope the soup and sat on the bed next to Citrusella. Citrusella filled Candlehead in with what she missed while she was away while Vanellope helped herself to the hot soup.

"So, what are we going to do about it?" Candlehead asked, watching as Sour Bill paced near the bedroom door.

"I'll take care of it tonight," Vanellope replied and handed Citrusella the pot of soup. "I need to get to the bottom of this before anything bad happens."

"Gonna have to do something about it soon," Citrusella said, jumping off the bed, "Taffyta and Gloyd were in a race with Anjelly at one of the new tracks and lost. They didn't look that happy watching a rookie walk off with the trophy."

"They acted all friendly with Anjelly after the race, but Taffyta started grumbling about losing moments after." She continued, "And you know what she's capable of when she's angry."

][WINNER'S CIRCLE][

Everyone stood on the Winner's Circle soon after the arcade closed for the day. Anjelly became an instant favorite and won three of the seven races she was chosen for, and placing either second or third in the other four races, netting her a total of 44 coins on her first day.

After she was awarded her 3 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze cups and a bag of coins, she left in hopes to meet with the Princess.

Once Anjelly got to the gates, she saw Vanellope and Sour Bill walking towards her.

"We need to talk," Vanellope said to the other racer as she walked up to her. "But I have someone else to talk to right now." Without even a quick glance at her fellow racer, Vanellope walked off to take care of other business.

Sour Bill looked up at Anjelly, "Please meet us at the throne room," he said, "Your friends will arrive there shortly." He bowed and raced off to follow the Princess.

Vanellope walked up to Taffyta and Rancis and pulled them away from the rest of the group.

"What's going on, Princess?" Rancis asked.

"How do you feel about the three new racers?" Vanellope questioned back, sitting on a nearby candy rock.

Taffyta scowled. "The two boys are nothing but trouble!" She scoffed, "They don't know how to keep their mouths shut!"

"And the girl?" Vanellope continued her questioning.

"She's not that bad," Rancis replied, "But it seems like she's easily swayed by the boys."

"Why do you ask, Princess Vanellope?" Taffyta asked, confused.

"I'm about to meet with the three of them," Vanellope replied. "I just don't know if I should meet with them alone or with everybody else."

"We'll be there!" Taffyta exclaimed, "One of those boys charged at you earlier, I want everyone else to be there to stop him if he were to do that again!"

"Okay then, I can't stop you guys from being there," Vanellope smiled. "Can you tell everyone to meet me in the throne room?" Taffyta and Rancis nodded and ran towards the winner's circle while Vanellope made her way back to the throne room.

][THRONE ROOM][

Anjelly was pacing around the room when she caught a glimpse of two displays near the throne. She walked up to them and read each of the stories told on the parchment. She teared up after reading King Candy's story. Her tears were non-stop after reading about Vanellope.

"So, now you know my story," a voice said at the entranceway of the throne room. Anjelly quickly turned and saw the Princess walking up to her. Without hesitation, she ran at Vanellope and enveloped her in a big hug, letting the tears flow and apologizing repeatedly in between hiccups.

The other racers walked in and saw Vanellope trying to comfort Anjelly. The racers turned toward the other entrance when they heard someone yell in anger.

"YOU BUG! What did you do to her?" Lucas screamed, struggling against the binds put on him by Wynchel. "Let's race! I'll prove to everyone that you're a fake!"

Anjelly and Taffyta looked ready to yell back, but Vanellope spoke up first. "Fine, if that's what it'll take to make you listen, we'll go once around the circuit. No upgrades and no power-ups." She gave Anjelly a quick smile, assuring the other racer that she would be fine.

Taffyta and Candlehead walked up to the duo. Taffyta glared at the two prisoners before speaking, "Are you sure about this? He's a nutcase! I'll race in your spot!"

"Besides, you're coming out of an illness and you just got out of bed" Candlehead added, worried about her friend's health and safety.

Vanellope hugged both of them, "I'll be fine. Besides, I didn't get to race today. I want to get out there and feel the breeze!" At that time, the rest of the group walked up to wish their Princess luck.

"We finally get to see the Princess race in her new kart!" Minty cheered, "Can't wait to see what we'll be up against!"

Vanellope walked up to the throne, jumped into her kart, and drove up to her race opponent. "Your kart is in the castle garage. The upgrades you added have been temporarily disabled until one of us crosses the finish line."

Several minutes later, the two competitors were off to the races. For most of the race, they were practically driving next to each other. Lucas constantly tried to race dirty by crashing into the side of Vanellope's kart. He succeeded a few times, but later in the race, he found himself crashing into the walls of the race track.

They got to the Gumdrop Half pipe and Vanellope shifted into fifth gear, weaving left and right, dodging the gumballs. She got to the track speed boost and easily jumped the ramp over the Cupcake Canyon.

Lucas only drove this track once other time, when he raced Taffyta and Rancis earlier on the week. He still had trouble learning the rolling pattern of the gumballs, but managed to get through unscathed. He missed the speed boost and barely had enough to make it over the jump. He had Vanellope in his sights, but he was already in fifth gear and she was slowly pulling away. He soon crossed the finish line, and whole eight seconds after Vanellope.

Vanellope jumped out of her kart and walked up to Lucas, who was just pulling up to the castle. "Will you listen now?"

Lucas hopped out of his kart and grumbled, "No promises."

Taffyta looked ready to pummel the boy, but someone else beat her to the punch. In the blink of an eye, Harry's fist connected with Lucas' cheek, knocking the boy to the floor.

Anjelly marched up and stood next to Vanellope, hands on her hips and glaring daggers at her fallen friend. "You got your race and lost. You were given a punishment, and I honestly think Princess Vanellope went easy on you when she issued it. You were sent to the Fungeon after trying to attack the Princess, and you still won't listen? If only we had a candy giant come and knock some sense into you!" She stepped away for a moment, trying to cool down.

"Princess!" Candlehead and Jubileena yelled from where they were watching the race. Vanellope turned and saw that they were pointing toward the bridge connecting Sugar Rush to Grand Central Station. Vanellope looked up at the bridge and saw Ralph walking down, accompanied by Felix and Sgt. Tamara Calhoun.

"Ralphie!" Vanellope cheered and jumped up to embrace her giant friend the moment his group walked up.

Ralph laughed and hugged his friend, "Good to see you too, Vanellope."

"Looks like you're feeling better, short stuff," Tamara said, "Heard you were feeling under the weather, so we brought some goodies to share with everyone to celebrate your successful update!"

"Great! But let me take care of something first before we party," Vanellope said and walked up to the three new racers. After introducing them to their visitors, she led everyone to the throne room and pulled Lucas over to the displays.

"Sour Bill told me that you thought I was a fake person coded into the game to ruin it," Vanellope said, "Anjelly has already read everything in these two displays and I'm going to assume she told Harry everything during our race. Judging by the bruising on your cheek, I'm also going to assume that he regrets everything he did and wishes to apologize. She turned and grinned at the other new boy, who blushed and gazed down at the ground.

"My life isn't exactly the pampered life expected of royalty," Vanellope continued, "At a point in my life, I was considered a mistake, a glitch, an outcast banished to the junkyard and had to glitch my way to hide and live in an explosive mountain. Then I met these guys," she motioned over toward Ralph, Felix, and Tamara, "And they practically risked their lives and their games to make sure ours didn't die."

"King Candy fought and was deleted by a racer named Turbo from another game. Turbo used what he learned from the deleted code and turned himself into King Candy. He went on to locking away everybody's memories and tried to delete me, so that he would have complete rule over Sugar Rush," Vanellope paused for a bit, looking over at her old race kart. "I have the ability to glitch around because of how much Turbo tampered with my code. The patch included in your update made it difficult to do so now. Before, I was able to glitch freely. Now, I get tired after glitching even just once!"

Lucas fell to his knees after reading the displays and listened to everything Vanellope told him. "Hopefully, before you go ignoring orders and causing trouble, you stop and learn about everything instead of assuming what you thought was right." Vanellope finished, leaning against her display, still slightly exhausted from her glitching the night before.

Lucas nodded and apologized for all the trouble he caused. He noticed her exhaustion and signaled for someone to come and help. Ralph walked over and lifted Vanellope up to his shoulders, where she was able to sit and rest.

"You okay, kid?" Ralph asked, glancing over at his best friend.

"I'll be fine," Vanellope replied and smiled, "Besides, we still have that party! To the ballroom!"

Felix and Tamara placed the food they brought on the tables along the walls of the ballroom. They partied until just before midnight when Vanellope decided to call it quits so that she could be rested and ready for the next day's races.

A/N: This is it, the end of Sweet and Sour! Hope you all have a wonder New Year! Happy 2013!

Keep an eye out for a sequel, featuring two new racers and the completion of the Diet Cola Mountain track!


End file.
